Day 274 - THE September to Remember

One night last week an email crossed the local listserv with a report of The Pompadour. It was too late to chase and I had a busy couple of days ahead, so I wasn't sure if I'd be able to chase at all. I figured I'd wait and see if it was relocated the next day before making a decision. Sure enough it was found the following morning and reported sporadically during the day. Anxiously I imagined the chase in my head. It was less than an hour drive and I could potentially be there and back in 90 minutes if everything panned out. Avoiding other birders might be problematic given the location and the fact it was a rarity, but it was a good year bird and one I couldn't afford to miss.

I finally managed to get away around 6:30pm and sped most of the way to the stakeout--I pretty much hit every red light on the way making it seem like it took forever. When I arrived I found The Pompadour not overly pompous, and quite accommodating in the evening glow. The best part--not a birder in sight! I enjoyed the bird for a few minutes, before I packed back into the car and snuck off without being noticed. I was home, not having spent more than 1 hour and 20 minutes total for the chase, view, and return. All while keeping under the radar.

The Pompadour was a nice add for September and brought my total up to 334. The following week could potentially be a big one, with at least 3 targets on my radar, and with the middle of September who knows what might show up.

Now shortly after The Pompadour sighting I had a look at my year list and in reviewing one bird that I had not added, and talking with others, I decided to go back and tack in one year bird--the Identifiable Hustler. Initially I was unsure whether or not I was going to count it and left it on a tentative list--this one isn't in the category of the "Do-you-count-it Bird", but more in the category, of I'm not 100% sure of the ID. As the days and weeks past I have gotten more and more comfortable with the call and decided to add it unless I have a change of heart down the road.

Instead of inserting it where I saw it on my list, I am placing it at 335 for the time being. At the end of the year I'll go back and place it where it belongs accordingly.

The following week was slow. I didn't add any new birds, and despited looking at 100's of migrants I couldn't turn anything into a rarity. I was in a drought. The hot start into the middle of the month was over. I had expected to keep the big birds coming but there was just nothing to be seen. I finally was able to take a few days and focus on some specifics as the month started wrapping up and tabbed 4 new year birds in 72 hours. It all started with the infamous Do-you-count-it Bird. And yes, I am counting it. This was the first Do-you-count-it Bird I've seen in several years and I thought I had missed my shot for 2016. But not only did I get great looks, I got some really interesting pictures. A couple hours later and I stumbled upon some Angry Bellowers calling in the woods. This was getting to be one of my last resident birds to pick up, and it couldn't have come at a better time. I planned on spending some serious time in October looking if I missed out on this trek, but luckily it didn't come to that.

After this I got back to keeping secret what I found. I found two easily chase-able birds at places birders were frequenting near the end of the month. First came a Gorgeous Spinner. Inevitably this species i reported a handful of times each year. Often at the same place--and most of the time they are 1-day or even 1-hour wonders. It was a weekday morning, and I knew the birds weren't going anywhere based on where they were at that moment. I just couldn't let this one go so easy. This was a species I had actually already chased back in May and missed, so I was just excited to finally pick one up.

Later the same day a Lemon-frosted Riveter popped into my binocular view. This earlier than expected find was also at a location where other birders had been often in the previous days. The truth is I don't think anyone would even think to look for this bird where it was found because everyone coming to the area was so focused on a specific habitat and species that this specific "patch" was going unchecked. I certainly wasn't the first person here this week, nor would I be the last--but this report was going int the vault as well.

I'll make up for these secrets later on I figure. Nothing has been so rare that it would lead to anyone missing out on a once in a lifetime bird. I wouldn't do that. But these birds reported a couple times each year are expendable for this one time undercover adventure. It's helping keep my identity under the wraps, while allowing me to keep building my year list.

As the month came to a close I added a photo of an Enlisted Migrant, a bird seen earlier this year that I missed an opportunity to photograph. This is going to be one of the things I try to focus on in the coming months--adding pictures of as many birds I've seen but didn't take pictures of as possible. The truth is that things are going to come to a pretty abrupt halt for the rest of the year. The brunt of fall migration is over... I have my targets for each of the three months and an a pretty good idea of where I am going to be come Dec 31 now. But of the birds I've seen this year, I am missing pictures of about 30. I can probably get pictures of about 1/2 of those. I have recordings of 4 species I didn't photograph--use your imagination and you might be able to guess what family. Then there are 12 species I just missed my opportunity on. Those are the ones that I hate--in some cases they are common (6 actually) and I just didn't take the time early on to get a picture because I was so focused on birding.

Hindsight right? A big year isn't about photos, but it certainly is fun to try and get as many as possible to go along with what you saw.

This was absolutely the September to remember in terms of what I saw and where I ended up. Sitting at 339 today, I saw almost every bird I looked for, and aside from the vagrants I'd hoped would be reported and weren't--I didn't miss much. September was exactly what I wanted in terms of new birds--I added 17 species in comparison to just 7 in August. I wanted to be right around 340 so I am sitting pretty.

But as I mentioned this is the beginning of the end. The next 3 months should be 3 of the slowest, most doldrums of the year. There just aren't that many birds left to see. Going through my list of possibles for the next 92 days and there are just 5 species I hope/expect to see in the following 31 days. Here is a little insight into the rest of the year as well--on top of the 5 for October, I hope to see 10-11 new species in November, and finally just around 6 in December. So--there you have it--my end goal for right now is roughly 360 species. Take that for what it's worth. Who knows what October will really bring, and if the next 3 months will pan out as expected. Is 360 a new big year record in Narnia, or am I coming up short? Will there be some mega rarities that propel that total higher? Will I miss some things I am expecting and come up 5, 10, or more short?

Your guess is as good as mine.

New birds this post: 6
Year List: 339

FOLLOW ALONG:

Next Post

Previous Post

Day 259 - The Ides of September are One to Remember

It's been quite a week. I have steadily added new year birds to my list and had some tough calls to make for various reasons. At the end of last week I saw a bird that I waffled on whether or not to count for my year list. I have had a couple of these this year and initially was going to count the one I saw last week, but changed my mind--crossing it off my year list. The said species falls into an interesting category in terms of the birds of North America. There are all kinds of birds that people question keeping on their life lists, some of which include introduced species--even things as common as House Sparrow or European Starling--to the wild and crazy like Bishops, Wydahs, and Mynas. There are parrots, hawks and falcons, and finches... Escapees, introduced, breeding, not breeding, established, random, whatever. The ABA rules recently changed for some species as well making them countable--like Egyptian Goose and California Condor for instance. The fact is there are lots of birds out there that have questionable origins, questionable arrivals, and questionable histories in general. So where do I draw the line?

I've taken a tough stance this year, but had thoughts about being more lenient. For instance, Narnia has it's fair share of Do-you-count-it Birds (this is a species name for 2016), as well as a healthy population of Ridiculous Curlers. There are a handful of species that are reported annually that simply are not on the Narnia State list for various reasons. In my previous big year, I didn't count any of these birds--and thus far this year I haven't, but... I'm leaning towards softening my stance I guess. I'm an advocate for your list is your list. You are welcome to keep it how you see fit. When it comes to listing and competition this can be a sticky situation. The most ardent ABA listers would never count an escaped--yet seemingly established population Pin-tailed Wydah in Los Angeles on their list--but they might count a long established Egyptian Goose in Florida. The line we as birders have come up with seems a bit ridiculous at times.

But for now I will stand firm and not count these birds--as tough as it is to not have one more bird on the list! With all this talk about a bird I didn't count, what about the birds I did?

The first countable new bird of the week was a Moustached Zipper that landed momentarily on an dead limb before disappearing into a field to not be seen again. It's been a good fall for this specie sin Narnia and it was nice to put it behind me early in the month. It was only a few minuted later when I looked up at a Hooded Inspector peering back down at me. This was actually a really good find, and the 1st report this fall form Narnia. But I kept my lips sealed on both. These species were at a popular birding hot spot and I saw other birders there so figured they could find them with a little luck (they didn't).

The following day I visited one of my favorite birding spots this year to spot a gliding Fantastic Hood come in for a landing. One of my favorite birds I had been itching to add it to my year list and could finally relax. I didn't snap a picture before the bird was out of sight, but figured I would come across one or a few more in the coming weeks and take care of my picture then. Not reporting this one was a no-brainer, I doubted anyone would try looking for it here, and it would be hard to relocate anyways.

I decided to see if I could stretch my streak to 3 days in a row and made the trip to track down 1 of 3 remaining breeding birds in Narnia that I haven't seen this year, but expected to track down before the fall is over. I left early in the morning and arrived just after sunrise and the bird I was looking for was nowhere to be seen. I spent the next 30 minutes scouring the habitat and still hadn't found my target. I was beginning to get nervous and headed back to where I started so I could try another loop when I noticed a lovely Powdered Sneaker sitting on the side of the road. A sigh of relief and I turned around to get a better look. After getting my fill I drove a little further only to find a few more.

I have a story about this day that I want to share, but can't till after the years over--to many details and too much information would give up my state and probably my identity. The ides of September will be one to remember come 2017 and my recap on the year.

The following day I was tied up most of the day and of course that meant good birds were found and reported. After the first reported species I formulated a plan to try for it once I could get away. I was good to go when another report popped into my email that made me pause. I had to decide do I chase bird A or bird B (A being the original bird, and B being the newly reported). Now, A was definitely the rare of the 2 species reported, and it was the 1st report this year. Bird B I had missed several times so far this year, but would likely get more chances this fall and winter. Bird A was about twice as far of a drive as Bird B so there was that as well. I tossed the birds back and forth and settled on Bird B. I felt that I would have better odds of finding it with the limited time I had before dark.

So off I went arriving at the are where the bird was reported. As usual my nerves were up, and my leg was shaking with anticipation. I pulled into the parking lot and set off to look for the bird which I realized fairly quickly was not here. Shit. I made sure to thoroughly check the area before deciding to check a nearby lake where I figured the bird might have gone. It wasn't there. I knew there were 3 more places I could check that would all be visible from the sky from the original location. As I drove through the nearest location, a park, I wasn't seeing anything. I decided to check one last road and as I pulled onto it I spotted a few birds. Sure enough one of them was the Speckled Jerk!

I couldn't believe I had found the bird! There were a few minutes where I regretted not going for Bird A, but after putting forth the effort and tracking down Bird B, I was happy with my choice. I could now focus on bird A the following day and extend my streak to 5 days with a new bird. I had the same issue where I couldn't get out to chase the bird first thing, but after getting free for a bit I headed to the stakeout of Bird A. There were a couple birders there I didn't recognize and they seemed content not to make eye contact with me--a little awkward. I looked for the previously reported bird but it was no where to be found. And I really put forth an effort. I ended up finally throwing in the towel and capping off a 110 miles round trip day of birding without adding a new year bird--streak snapped.

But it was still an amazing week of birds and birding. Here I am half way through September sitting at Three-hundred and Thirty-three species for 2016. There were 3 voted this year on the poll that said my total would be between 300-325. So now that's out of the way there are only 3 options left, and I'm well on my way through one of them. I've also shredded through my hit list for the month rather nicely, leaving only a handful of gets left before September comes to a close in 2 weeks. If I can keep this momentum going I may have a shot at the current record!

New birds this post: 5
Year List: 333

FOLLOW ALONG:

Next Post

Previous Post

Day 252 - Shhhhh, Don't Tell Anyone

When I look back at the first week of September in a few months, I might have some regrets--and it's not about the birds I saw--but about the birds I shared. I have for all intents and purposes been a boy scout this year in terms of reporting what I see. Unless its a chase of someone else's bird, I pretty much always let others know. This week the boy scout went dark... It started out with a Harsh Inspector. Not an every day bird in Narnia, but usually reported annually, sometimes with several showing up. To my knowledge this was the first of the year. I saw it and pulled out my phone to share--then I had a moment, and put my phone away. This was a turning point for the year--the 1st day of September, the biggest month of the fall, and I had 1 new bird already. But I wasn't going to share...

The fact is, I think I have serious competition. I don't know how serious, but part of me is telling myself to hold back. This person has already chased several birds I've found this year, where in return they haven't produced a single rarity for me to chase. I know this isn't eye for an eye, but this birders is acting how a big year birder acts. Part of me is nervous--what if this person hasn't put all their sightings into eBird this year? What is their actual year number? It's high as is, and them chasing everything seems like a giveaway.

So I didn't share. 20 minutes pass and I run into another birder--we chat for a bit and I don't spill the beans--if anything they will find the inspector and get to take credit, and I can act like I missed it. But they didn't find it. Okay, I hid one from everyone--that's not me, but there's a lot at stake at the moment, and I'm playing it close to the chest.

The following day I was off in pursuit of a rarity that someone else reported--long overdue for this fall.  It was a good bird for Narnia and would be a major bonus for the year. I arrived at Frozen Lake near the Witch's Camp--no birders. That's a plus. I made my way to the area the bird was seen and started looking. This was my second visit to the lake in as many weeks, and the last trip turned up a handful of new birds. I saw much of the same but slowly put together a huge list of birds for the day. By the time I left I tallied almost 70 species in under 2 hours. As I searched I spotted the bird I had come to look for--a Perfect Sprinter. And I wouldn't have to report it since no one else saw me.

I was still looking when I spotted a bird that looked out of place--it was a Pale-based Sprinter! This was a great find for my big year and something I really should report--but... I watched and tried to get a shot in flight as it disappeared past some trees and out of sight.  I managed a descent shot with cloud cover and a little rain making it difficult.  Another new year bird--another really good bird--but if I reported it people would know I was here. Shoot. How was I going to handle this.

For another 15 minutes I looked for birds when I spotted another out of place species. A Unique Vaultbill was sitting right out in the open.  This was out of season for sure--I had expected to get one in the coming months, but not today. 3 new year birds in under an hour. Okay how would I not report these? Not only were 2 new reports, but the bird I chased was rare and others would want to know it was still around.  But I couldn't do it, I needed the animosity.

Then birders showed up. I don't want to go to much into this at the moment, but I'll share more on this day/week after the year is over. Do you think I said anything about the birds? You can probably imagine based on this post...

On the 3rd I again found myself in the field at one of my favorite fall birding stops. Lots of migrants were passing through and in the first little bit I flushed my first Quaker's Inspector of the year. Three days in to September and I had already tallied 5 new year birds. This is exactly how I needed the month to go--I just hoped that Karma wasn't going to bite me in the ass for my shenanigans.

Now there is no code among birders to share their sightings. In fact there are birders in Narnia who never contribute anything to the community--this includes some birders who spend a lot of time afield and find some good birds from time to time. For some birding is a very personal thing--they look at birds, enjoy their time with them, and that's it. They may from time to time find good birds, and its a reward for them and only them. There are also the birders who perceive that they are sharing by reporting a rarity hours, or even days later--after its gone. The reason vary--I was out of cell service... I couldn't get 3G to work... I wanted to make sure I was right about the ID... And so on and so forth. These birders are almost worse in their sharing because in some cases it seems almost like its done on purpose. There is one particular birder who in the past 2 years has had 2 mega rarities that I have yet to see in Narnia. In both cases the report was after the birds were long gone...

I tend to share--maybe over share even. There is a very social aspect to birding, and helping other get to see birds they've never seen before is a fun feeling. It's also easier to share now then ever before so I expect it to happen--and immediately. So here I am now withholding 4 rare species in the first 72 hours of the month. I am being the person I can't stand--and worse, I told no other birders--not even my friends. I think at the end of the year that is what I will feel bad about. Not telling at least a handful of people I genuinely care about. Will they understand my reasoning? Will they think I was selfish? Will they tell me that my secret would have been safe with them? Will they be mad because they could've helped me get more birds maybe?  IT doesn't matter, because the whole point was a secret big year, and with it will come secrets that inevitably leave a bad taste in any number of peoples mouths.

At some point at the end of December or early January others are going to find out what I did, my eBird checklists will show up--my year number will update--and I will reveal what I was up to. I still don't know how people will react--but I can't imagine this type of behavior will be a positive.  There is a price to pay for everything, and I don't know what mine will be yet.

Although I was worried about the birding gods and karma coming together to punch me in the mouth, the first week ended with a surprise Northern Migrant, making 6 new year birds in as many days.  What an incredible start to the month and hopefully an omen for the coming 3 weeks.  I have a list of 14 more birds I hope to stumble upon in the next 24 days--and that doesn't take into account some crazy things showing up. So shhhhh, don't tell anyone what I'm seeing, or that my secret big year is making me keep secrets!

New birds this post: 6
Year List: 328

FOLLOW ALONG:

Next Post

Previous Post